Introduction

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Curious about the house you live in? Want to find out more about its history and who lived there in the past?  

These webpages will guide you through a variety of the resources held at the County Record Office, the information they contain and how to use them. The majority are available to view by appointment in our search room in Northallerton, either on microfilm or as the physical records themselves. We can also provide visitors with free access to a number of online resources, such as census records via the Ancestry and FindMyPast subscription websites.

Whether you live in an older or more modern property, you can use these archive resources to investigate:

  • the history of the building and how it may have changed over time,
  • changes in ownership,
  • former residents and their occupations,
  • the previous use of the land it was built on,
  • the local history of the wider area.
Timber cruck-frame house, Harome [BU02680A]
Manor House & Cottage, Knaresborough [BU08209]
High Street, Stokesley by Bertram Unné [BU07042]

Our collections include a wide range of material from historic maps, architectural drawings and old photographs to historic property deeds, electoral registers and more. These items span a period of nearly 800 years, from the early 1200s to the 1970s. The majority date from the 1700s onwards.

Every home has its own unique history. Which route you take through these records will be guided by the age of the property, where you live in North Yorkshire, what information you already have and where the evidence leads you. In some cases, you may need to broaden your search to other archive collections held elsewhere.

Finding and piecing together information from a variety of records may take quite a bit of detective work. We hope you will find it a fascinating and rewarding journey!

Follow the links below to find out how to start your research and explore our collections further:  

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